| Chinese Text Project | |
| Simplified Chinese version |
| 或问： | Someone said: |
| “李斯尽忠， | Li Si was completely loyal to the Qin, |
| 胡亥极刑， | but in the end Emperor Huhai executed him. |
| 忠乎？” | What's the point of loyalty? |
| 曰： | Yangzi said: |
| “斯以留客， | Li Si stayed in Qin as a guest of Lu Buwei |
| 至作相， | and eventually became Prime Minister. |
| 用狂人之言， | Using the words of an alchemist to flatter the Emperor, |
| 从浮大海， | he followed Qin Shi Huang on his tours of the four seas. |
| 立赵高之邪说， | Upon Qin Shi Huang's death, he let Zhao Gao's treacherous plan to replace the chosen successor stand, |
| 废沙丘之正， | discarded the Emperor's official edict, |
| 阿意督责， | assented to the idea and directed the orders. |
| 焉用忠？” | Where in this is loyalty? |
| 霍？ | The other said: What about Huo Guang. |
| 曰： | Yangzi said: |
| “始元之初， | At the beginning of the Shiyuan era (86—80 B.C.), |
| 拥少帝之微， | he acted as regent for the young Emperor Zhao, |
| 摧燕、上官之锋， | and destroyed Prince Yan and Shangguan's coup. |
| 处废兴之分， | After Zhao's untimely death, he stayed and played his part as regent, first deposing his first chosen successor and then installing Emperor Xuan. |
| 堂堂乎忠， | Appearing so courageous and august in his loyalty |
| 难矣哉！ | —but it's difficult! |
| 至显， | Because coming to the crimes of his wife Huo Xian, |
| 不终矣。” | in the end, it wasn't so. |
| Character | Composition | Variants | Reading | Meaning | Hanyu | Kangxi | Cihai |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 或 | 戈+4 | 𢈿 | huò ㄏㄨㄛˋ | (1) 代词：代人或事物：有的，有人。 Pronoun: some, someone, something. | v2,p1402#08 | p.412#18 | p.552r5c01 |
| 问 | 口+8 | 𠳅 问 | wèn ㄨㄣˋ | Ask, inquire. / Investigate, look into. / Inquire after, give regards to. / Interrogate, question. / Visit (another states). / Research, investigate. / Give, present with. / Tell. / Sound. / Same as “闻(7)” wèn ㄨㄣˋ: Reputation, fame. | v7,p4284#03 | p.195#10 | p.279r3c03 |
| 李斯 | 木+3 斤+8 | 李 杍 𣂕 | lǐ sī ㄌㄧˇ ㄙ | [人名] [Name of a person] | v2,p1162#08 v3,p2025#06 | p.511#11 p.480#04 | p.670r2c03 p.614r5c03 |
| 尽 | 皿+9 | 𥁞 尽 | jìn ㄐㄧㄣˋ | Finished, all gone. / Finish, end. / Die. / Until. / Exert oneself to the utmost. / Exhaust. / Limit, extreme. / (Spoken) clearly and unambiguously. / Fully, completely. / Most (superlative). / Advance, move forward. / Expense. | v4,p2567#05 | p.795#22 | p.940r3c05 |
| 忠 | 心+4 | zhōng ㄓㄨㄥ | loyalty, devotion, fidelity | v4,p2273#15 | p.377#13 | p.524r1c02 | |
| 胡亥 | 肉+5 亠+4 | 楜 衚 胡 | hú hài ㄏㄨˊ ㄏㄞˋ | Same as “秦二世皇帝” qín èr shì huáng dì ㄑㄧㄣˊ ㄦˋ ㄕˋ ㄏㄨㄤˊ ㄉㄧˋ: 姓名：胡亥，在位前210-前207。 Qin Er Shi (ruled 210 BC-207 BC)  | v3,p2056#08 v1,p0283#05 | p.979#12 p.88#08 | p.1093r2c01 p.78r2c01 |
| 极 | 木+9 | 极 | jí ㄐㄧˊ | extreme, utmost, furthest, final | v2,p1240#10 | p.542#02 | p.710r4c03 |
| 刑 | 刀+4 | xíng ㄒㄧㄥˊ | Punish. / Kill, put to death. / Harm, disaster. / Law, rules of punishment. / Rule by law. / A die used in casting. / A model, an example. / To emulate, imitate. / Achieve, establish. / Same as “鉶” xíng ㄒㄧㄥˊ: Porcelain soup bowl. / Same as “形(1.1)” xíng ㄒㄧㄥˊ: Body, thing with form. / Same as “形(5)” xíng ㄒㄧㄥˊ: Exhibit, show. | v1,p0324#15 | p.137#11 | p.178r4c02 | |
| 乎 | 丿+4 | 宓 | hū ㄏㄨ | (1.1) 语气词：表示疑问或反问，相当于“吗”或“呢”。 Modal particle expressing questioning or a rhetorical question. | v1,p0036#08 | p.82#07 | p.47r3c03 |
| 曰 | 曰+0 | yuē ㄩㄝ | (1) 说。 Say, speak. | v2,p1482#02 | p.502#01 | p.648r3c03 | |
| 斯 | 斤+8 | 𣂕 | sī ㄙ | Cut, cleave. / Leave, go from. / Exhaust. / Demonstrative pronoun: this, these. / Connective: then, in that case. / Particle. / Lowly, unworthy. | v3,p2025#06 | p.480#04 | p.614r5c03 |
| 以 | 人+3 | 㠯 | yǐ ㄧˇ | Use. / Believe. / Command. / Lead. / Connect, implicate. / Have. / Cause, reason. / Preposition: because. / Preposition: from, in. / Preposition: at [some time]. / Preposition: using. / Preposition: in accordance with. / Preposition: relying upon. / Preposition: in the capacity of. / Preposition: with, together with. / Connective: indicates the following action is the objective of the preceding one. / Connective: used between adverbial clause and verb to express modification. / Connective: and. / Connective: but. / Connective: and so, thus. / Particle: used together with some words expressing direction and time. / Modal particle. / Same as “已(1)” yǐ ㄧˇ: Stop, discontinue. / Same as “已(7.2)” yǐ ㄧˇ: Adverb: already. / Same as “已(7.3)” yǐ ㄧˇ: Adverb: extremely. | v1,p0105#07 | p.94#01 | p.87r6c01 |
| 留 | 田+5 | 畄 畱 | liú liǔ liù ㄌㄧㄡˊ ㄌㄧㄡˇ ㄌㄧㄡˋ | stop, halt; stay, detain, keep | v4,p2537#04 | p.761#05 | p.913r4c03 |
| 客 | 宀+6 | kè ㄎㄜˋ | guest, traveller; customer | v2,p0927#13 | p.284#12 | p.416r4c04 | |
| 至 | 至+0 | 𦤳 𦤴 𦤵 𡊏 | zhì dié ㄓˋ ㄉㄧㄝˊ | reach, arrive; extremely, very | v4,p2814#01 | p.1001#11 | p.1111r3c04 |
| 作 | 人+5 | 胙 𢓓 | zuò ㄗㄨㄛˋ | Arise, stand up. / Grow, flourish. / Begin. / Create, make. / Work, effort. / Serve as, work as. / When, at such time as. | v1,p0134#06 | p.99#07 | p.99r3c01 |
| 相 | 目+4 | xiāng ㄒㄧㄤ | Mutual. / In succession. / Together. | v4,p2470#13 | p.800#18 | p.945r1c01 | |
| xiàng ㄒㄧㄤˋ | Watch. / Appearance. / Fortune-telling by appearance. / Help, assist. / Guide for the blind. / Prime minister, most senior minister. / Ceremonial officer. | ||||||
| 用 | 用+0 | 𤰆 𠛁 | yòng ㄩㄥˋ | use, employ, apply, operate; use | v1,p0097#05 | p.755#24 | p.908r6c02 |
| 狂 | 犬+4 | 𢚇 | kuáng jué ㄎㄨㄤˊ ㄐㄩㄝˊ | insane, mad; violent; wild | v2,p1334#04 | p.707#20 | p.873r6c02 |
| 人 | 人+0 | 𠔽 亻 | rén ㄖㄣˊ | Man, person. / Others, other people. / The people, ordinary men. / Talent, material. / [A man's] character. / Affairs of men, world of man. / Benevolence. | v1,p0101#10 | p.91#01 | p.80r2c01 |
| 之 | 丿+3 | 㞢 | zhī ㄓ | Towards; go to. / Demonstrative pronoun: this, these. / Third person pronoun: him, her, it. / Auxiliary word: of. / Auxiliary word: used between subject and predicate, cancels independence of a clause. / Auxiliary word: used in a sentence for aesthetic purpose only, no meaning. | v1,p0043#01 | p.82#04 | p.47r2c02 |
| 言 | 言+0 | 訁 𢍗 𢍬 | yán ㄧㄢˊ | Speak, say. / Discuss, debate. / Tell. / Doctrine, theory, words. / One word. / Sentence. / Particle, no meaning. | v6,p3936#01 | p.1146#01 | p.1236r5c03 |
| 从 | 彳+8 | 従 从 | cóng ㄘㄨㄥˊ | Follow, accompany. / Cause to follow, make go along with. / Pursue, chase after. / Die with, bury along with the dead. / Listen to, do as required. / Eloquent. / Obedient, submissive. / Route to peaceful society, correct order. / Perform, participate in. / Blood relation through the male line. / Secondary, sub- (of official titles). / Preposition: from. / Preposition: towards. / Preposition: because of, due to. / Addition, also. | v2,p0829#12 | p.368#18 | p.514r5c01 |
| zòng ㄗㄨㄥˋ | North-south. / Alliance of states opposed to the Qin alliance. / Straight, upright. / Indulge, allow to. / Connective: even if. | ||||||
| zōng ㄗㄨㄥ | Trace, vestige. | ||||||
| sǒng ㄙㄨㄥˇ | See 从容。 | ||||||
| 浮 | 水+7 | fú ㄈㄨˊ | to float, drift, waft; to exceed; superfluous | v3,p1629#04 | p.624#23 | p.794r2c02 | |
| 大 | 大+0 | 𠘲 | dà ㄉㄚˋ | Large, great. / Exceed, be greater than. / Venerate, treat as being great. / Many. / Thick, coarse. / Elder. / Respectful term of address. / Adverb expressing high level or broad range. | v1,p0520#01 | p.248#01 | p.342r3c03 |
| tài ㄊㄞˋ | Most (superlative). / Too much. / Peaceful, tranquil. | ||||||
| 海 | 水+7 | hǎi ㄏㄞˇ | sea, ocean; maritime | v3,p1627#01 | p.625#14 | p.795r4c04 | |
| 立 | 立+0 | 立 | lì ㄌㄧˋ | Stand. / Erect, raise. / Establish, found. / Fix, set. / Determine, decide. / Become independent. / Exist. / Take office. / Become ruler, enthrone. / Stop, prevent from moving. / Immediately. | v4,p2706#01 | p.870#17 | p.1002r5c01 |
| 赵高 | 走+7 高+0 | 赵 髙 | zhào gāo ㄓㄠˋ ㄍㄠ | [人名] [Name of a person] | v5,p3488#01 v7,p4593#01 | p.1217#50 p.1451#26 | p.1286r2c08 p.1514r4c03 |
| 邪 | 邑+4 | 耶 | xié ㄒㄧㄝˊ | Wicked, evil. / Wicked or evil person. / Evil or demonic things. / Cause of illness. / Lean, slant. | v6,p3758#04 | p.1269#14 | p.1336r5c01 |
| yú ㄩˊ | Excess. | ||||||
| xú ㄒㄩˊ | Slow, slow moving. | ||||||
| yé ㄧㄝˊ | Particle expressing questioning or a rhetorical question. / Particle expressing assertion. | ||||||
| 说 | 言+7 | 説 说 | shuō ㄕㄨㄛ | (3) 主张，学説。 Advocate. | v6,p3979#03 | p.1164#08 | p.1246r4c02 |
| 废 | 广+12 | 廃 废 | fèi ㄈㄟˋ | abrogate, terminate, discard | v2,p0903#10 | p.351#02 | p.493r3c02 |
| 沙 | 水+4 | 砂 | shā shà suō ㄕㄚ ㄕㄚˋ ㄙㄨㄛ | sand, gravel, pebbles; granulated | v3,p1562#09 | p.611#21 | p.772r2c02 |
| 丘 | 一+4 | 丠 㐀 丘 㘳 | qiū ㄑㄧㄡ | hill; elder; empty; a name | v1,p0017#01 | p.77#14 | p.36r4c01 |
| 正 | 止+1 | 㱏 𣥔 𤴓 𧾸 | zhèng ㄓㄥˋ | Straight, not at an angle. / Appropriate. / Normal. / Decent, upstanding. / Fix, determine. / Govern, rule. / Set punishments. / Formal, primary. / Pure, unadulterated. / Son by one's official wife. / Luckily, fortuitously. / Expresses continuation of an action or state. / Officer. / Only. / Government, state affairs. / Prove, verify. | v2,p1436#01 | p.574#02 | p.732r5c02 |
| zhēng ㄓㄥ | First month in the Chinese calander. / Centre of a target. / Attack, punitive expedition. | ||||||
| 阿 | 阜+5 | 啊 | ā ㄚ | Prefix used before terms referring to relatives or nicknames. | v6,p4119#11 | p.1348#06 | p.1415r5c03 |
| ē ㄜ | Large hill. / Curved part of a mountain. / Hillside or bank of a river. / Eaves of the ancestral temple which rise up at the four corners (a style also used over the coffin in a grave). / Roof. / Submit to, cater for. / Favor, partiality. / Intimate, be close with. / Delicate item woven of silk. / Delayed and arrogant sound of acceptance. / Soft and beautiful appearance. | ||||||
| 意 | 心+9 | yì ㄧˋ | thought, idea, opinion; think | v4,p2323#03 | p.394#22 | p.537r1c05 | |
| 督 | 目+8 | dū ㄉㄨ | supervise, oversee, direct | v4,p2495#12 | p.810#31 | p.952r2c01 | |
| 责 | 贝+4 | 𧵩 拆 责 | zé zhài ㄗㄜˊ ㄓㄞˋ | one's responsibility, duty | v6,p3626#02 | p.1205#19 | p.1271r3c01 |
| 焉 | 火+7 | yān ㄧㄢ | Same as “之(2)” zhī ㄓ: Demonstrative pronoun: this, these. / Same as “之(3)” zhī ㄓ: Third person pronoun: him, her, it. / Demonstrative pronoun and modal particle: than this. / Interrogative pronoun: how, where. / Interrogative pronoun: what. / Connective: and, then. / Preposition: in. / Modal particle. / Adjectival or adverbal suffix. | v3,p2206#14 | p.672#21 | p.847r5c01 | |
| 霍 | 雨+8 | 癨 | huò hè suǒ ㄏㄨㄛˋ ㄏㄜˋ ㄙㄨㄛˇ | quickly, suddenly; surname | v6,p4068#01 | p.1375#17 | p.1455r1c02 |
| 始元 | 女+5 儿+2 | 𠃭 乨 兘 𠙉 | shǐ yuán ㄕˇ ㄩㄢˊ | Shi Yuan, 1st era of Emperor Xiao Zhao of Han (汉孝昭皇帝), 86 BC-80 BC | v2,p1041#12 v1,p0264#06 | p.258#16 p.123#06 | p.381r1c02 p.131r4c02 |
| 初 | 刀+5 | 䥚 | chū ㄔㄨ | Begin, start. / Originally, formerly. / Adverb: just, only just. | v1,p0327#22 | p.137#33 | p.178r4c05 |
| 拥 | 手+13 | 拥 | yōng yǒng ㄩㄥ ㄩㄥˇ | embrace, hug, squeeze; crowd | v3,p1972#01 | p.457#26 | p.593r6c09 |
| 少 | 小+1 | shǎo shào ㄕㄠˇ ㄕㄠˋ | few, less, inadequate | v1,p0561#02 | p.296#20 | p.442r4c01 | |
| 帝 | 巾+6 | 𢂇 𠫦 | dì ㄉㄧˋ | supreme ruler, emperor; god | v1,p0738#02 | p.330#14 | p.474r5c07 |
| 微 | 彳+10 | wēi wéi ㄨㄟ ㄨㄟˊ | small, prefix micro-, trifling | v2,p0837#10 | p.370#12 | p.517r2c04 | |
| 摧 | 手+11 | cuī cuò ㄘㄨㄟ ㄘㄨㄛˋ | destroy, break, injure | v3,p1946#08 | p.450#23 | p.589r1c01 | |
| 燕 | 火+12 | 燕 | yàn yān ㄧㄢˋ ㄧㄢ | swallow (bird); comfort, enjoy | v3,p2239#06 | p.683#16 | p.859r2c01 |
| 上 | 一+2 | 丄 𠄞 | shàng ㄕㄤˋ | top; superior, highest; go up, send up | v1,p0005#04 | p.76#07 | p.24r2c01 |
| 官 | 宀+5 | 𠕍 | guān ㄍㄨㄢ | official, public servant | v2,p0921#04 | p.283#15 | p.413r2c01 |
| 锋 | 金+7 | 锋 | fēng ㄈㄥ | point of spear, sharp point | v6,p4210#08 | p.1307#12 | p.1381r6c04 |
| 处 | 虍+5 | 処 䖏 处 | chǔ ㄔㄨˇ | Stay, reside. / Settle. / Be in, located in. / Retire. / Appoint, serve in office. / Stop, rest. / Remain, stay. / Implement, carry out. / Handle, process. / Judge, form a judgement. / Decide, fix. / Distinguish, separate. / Standard, rule. | v4,p2822#12 | p.1073#25 | p.1183r5c02 |
| chù ㄔㄨˋ | Place, location. / Position, role. | ||||||
| 兴 | 臼+9 | 㒷 兴 | xīng ㄒㄧㄥ | Get up, arise. / Rise up, appear. / Create. / Establish, set up. / Advocate. / Move, start moving, raise (an army). / Do. / Select, pick out. / Collect. / Flourish, prosper. | v1,p0253#09 | p.1005#05 | p.1113r4c01 |
| xìng ㄒㄧㄥˋ | Like, appreciate. / Metaphor. / One of the six literary styles in the Book of Poetry. | ||||||
| 分 | 刀+2 | 份 | fēn ㄈㄣ | Separate, split. / Distribute, divide among. / Distinguish, tell apart. / Difference. / Clear, evident. / Share. / Half. / Gist, general point. / Equinox (in the Chinese unisolar calendar). / Measure word: unit of length equivalent to a tenth of one cun. / Measure word: unit of area equivalent to a tenth of one mu. / Measure word: unit of weight equivalent to a tenth of one qian. | v1,p0321#03 | p.136#04 | p.174r1c04 |
| fèn ㄈㄣˋ | Rank, position occupied. / Work, office. / Guess, speculate. / Happy, content. | ||||||
| 堂 | 土+8 | 坣 㙶 | táng ㄊㄤˊ | hall; government office | v1,p0452#14 | p.231#23 | p.322r6c01 |
| 乎 | 丿+4 | 宓 | hū ㄏㄨ | Modal particle expressing questioning or a rhetorical question. / Modal particle expressing admiration or exclamation. / Modal particle expressing estimation. / Modal particle expressing request or order. / Modal particle expressing calling. / Modal particle expressing consideration. / Modal particle expressing affirmation. / Particle used after adjectives. / Particle used in the middle of a sentence to express a pause. / Preposition: in, from, to. | v1,p0036#08 | p.82#07 | p.47r3c03 |
| 难 | 隹+11 | 𩁢 𩁬 𩀙 𩁣 𩁲 𩁩 𩀏 𩁤 难 | nán ㄋㄢˊ | Difficult, not easy. / Make difficult, think difficult. | v6,p4108#05 | p.1370#05 | p.1446r3c01 |
| nàn ㄋㄢˋ | Disaster. / Blame. / Censure, reject. / Resent. / Hate. / Doctrine, thesis. | ||||||
| nǎn ㄋㄢˇ | Fear. | ||||||
| nuó ㄋㄨㄛˊ | Luxuriant. / Ceremony to banish sprits thought responsible for contagion. / How, why. | ||||||
| 矣 | 矢+2 | 𠤘 | yǐ ㄧˇ | Modal particle used to express declaration. / Modal particle used to express exclamation. / Modal particle used to express an order or request. | v4,p2580#04 | p.823#37 | p.955r5c01 |
| 哉 | 口+6 | 才 | zāi ㄗㄞ | Begin, start. / Modal particle expressing exclamation. / Modal particle expressing questioning or a rhetorical question. | v1,p0611#07 | p.189#08 | p.270r2c01 |
| 显 | 页+14 | 顕 㬎 显 | xiǎn ㄒㄧㄢˇ | manifest, display; evident, clear | v7,p4395#06 | p.1410#21 | p.1483r2c01 |
| 不 | 一+3 | 不 𠀚 𠙐 | bù ㄅㄨˋ | Not have. / To not be. / Negational adverb, used before verbs, adjectives, etc. to indicate negation. / Negational adverb expressing prohibition: do not. / Negational adverb expressing rhetorical question: is not...? | v1,p0011#06 | p.76#15 | p.30r1c01 |
| fǒu ㄈㄡˇ | Same as “否(1.2)” fǒu ㄈㄡˇ: Adverb used together with an affirmative word, expressing its negative or opposite. / Same as “否(1.3)” fǒu ㄈㄡˇ: Adverb used at the end of a question to form a yes-no question. | ||||||
| fū ㄈㄨ | Sepal of a flower. | ||||||
| pī ㄆㄧ | Same as “丕(1)” pī ㄆㄧ: Large. | ||||||
| bǐ ㄅㄧˇ | Show disdain for. | ||||||
| 终 | 糸+5 | 𣊂 𤽘 𣧩 𠔾 𡦿 𢍐 𣈩 𤽬 夊 终 | zhōng ㄓㄨㄥ | end; finally, in the end | v5,p3384#05 | p.921#01 | p.1039r4c06 |
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